Getting Organized For Spring? 3 Things to Learn From the Planner Trend

Posted on April 3, 2019 Written by

One of the biggest trends I’ve seen since the beginning of the year is planners and bullet journals. While the planner trend is largely geared toward keeping people organized in their personal lives, this trend could also teach you a lot about staying organized in your work. Whether you keep your notes on a calendar, keep a printed checklist, have a favorite app on your phone or are hoping to take the first step in getting organized, here are three things the planner trend can teach you about keeping your work day on track.

1) Monthly, Weekly, or Daily Formats: Choose What Works For You
Whether you’re jumping into a bullet journal or just trying to keep your to-do lists on track, one of the biggest things to take from the planner trend is that you should choose the format that works best to keep you organized. Whether you want to plan on a monthly calendar so you can see longer-range plans at a glance or you prefer to plan your schedule day-by-day or even project-by-project, personalizing your plans according to your needs helps ensure that you stay on track.

When you’re working on getting organized, this might take some trial and error. You might want to make yourself a daily checklist and pin it up next to your calendar, for example. You might want to divide a notebook page in half with one side for meetings and another for important tasks. You might even keep your list on an app on your phone or on your computer. Whatever you choose, give it a week or so before deciding if it’s the right method for you.

2) Keep Your To-Do Lists and Meetings in One Place
Keeping your plans on one page is a helpful way to ensure that you don’t miss anything, and that can be a big help in your work day. Whether you keep everything in one binder like planner aficionados or simply have a designated space on your desk for your to-do list, by keeping all your daily tasks together you will be able to avoid double-booking yourself or scheduling too much in a day when you have a long sales meeting with an important customer.

And speaking of things to keep in one place…

3) Keep Notes On Hand—And Date Them!
Don’t be afraid to keep your notes in the same place as your schedule. This can make it easier for you to find your notes and it can make it easier to look back on how a project has progressed. It’s also important to date your notes so that you can reference when a note was taken—after all, it’s important to know which notes are the most up-to-date.

How do you stay organized? Do you keep a planner for your work day, or do you use another method? Join the conversation in the comments below.

Filed Under: Education, Marketing, News, Resources

The Secret to Great Customer Service: Empathy

Posted on March 29, 2019 Written by

What is the one skill that everybody in customer support must have? Whether you’ve been on the phone with a customer service representative or work in customer service yourself, empathy should be high on your list!

Empathy is putting yourself in others’ shoes and seeing a problem from their point of view, and in customer service it’s a helpful way to keep customer service interactions positive.  Empathy doesn’t mean that you have to totally agree with your customer, but being understanding of their stress and listening can make the difference between a customer service failure and a customer service success.

First and Foremost, Listen Carefully and Repeat What You’re Hearing in Your Own Words
One of the biggest reasons that customers want to have an empathetic customer service interaction is that they want to be understood. Listening and paraphrasing what you’ve heard can help them feel heard and can help ensure that you create a solution that actually addresses their need.

While you’re listening, pay close attention to the things that they aren’t saying, too. Details like tone and body language can help tell you what emotions are at play in the interaction. Mentioning those emotions—saying “I understand this is stressful for you,” for example—can also do a lot to show that you have heard and understood the way that the customer’s need has impacted them.

Stay Respectful
It’s easy for things to get heated when your customers are upset or under stress, but it’s essential to keep in mind how you would like to be treated if you had a similar customer concern. Stay as calm as you are able and express respect for your customers to keep them feeling important. You might even find that this respect helps diffuse the situation.

Make Customers a Part of the Solution
Does it sound like your customer is stressed because they aren’t in control? Make sure that they are able to play a part in the solution. For example, giving your customer two to three options to choose from can help them feel like they have an active role in the solution.

Finish By Showing That You Care
Studies have shown that people judge an experience based on the intense moments at its end. While you might not always be able to get them exactly the solution they were hoping for, you can always show that you care and help them walk away with a positive feeling about the experience. If their concern is still an issue, make sure to reiterate that you understand how they are impacted by that concern. If there’s a clear next step, remind them of it before you finish the conversation.

Is empathy a central part of how you approach a customer service interaction? How do you put empathy to work in your business? We’d love to see you join the conversation in the comments below.

Filed Under: Marketing, Misc, News

Which Envelope is Right For Your Customer?

Posted on March 28, 2019 Written by

When your customer is creating a mailing, the envelope it’s sent in will be the recipient’s first impression—they want it to be perfect! That means not only creating the right design but choosing the right envelope for the job. So, which envelope is the right one for your customer?

How Much Polish Does Their Mailing Need?
Finding an envelope to match the feeling of your customer’s mailing is essential. Stationery envelopes are designed to accompany letterhead, and come in stocks to match. They are good for communications that need an additional bit of professional polish, like official company letters or letters to important clients.

Business envelopes, on the other hand are a good option for everyday use in mailing invoices, account statements, and other informational pieces.

And if your customer is looking for a way to send catalogs and other oversized documents, mailing envelopes create a similar look to business envelopes but are made in larger sizes to suit those oversized contents.

Big or Small?
When your customer is sending a large mailing or an informational piece, they might want to consider the size of that mailing piece. Smaller pieces like brochures or rack cards are a perfect fit for business envelopes. Even better than the perfect fit, a branded envelope is a great way to add a bit more professional polish to the mailing piece and another chance to incorporate the logo for an added boost to brand recognition.

However, if your customers aren’t familiar with envelope sizes, you might want to review the options with your customer: #6 ¾ (3 5/8”x 6 ½”), #9 (3 7/8”x8 7/8”) and #10 (4 1/8”x 9½”). Our stationery envelopes come standard in the #10 size.

On the other hand, big documents like catalogs or booklets could do with a larger envelope, and we offer those, too! Choose from 6”x9”, 9”x12”, or 10”x13” to create a mailing envelope sized for your customer’s document.

What Seal Do They Want?
Your customer might not give much thought to their envelope seal options, but they are also an important thing to consider. When they are looking at business envelopes, standard gum flap envelopes are probably most familiar to your customers, using an adhesive that must be moistened before sealing the envelope.

However, standard gum flap envelopes might not be a good choice for customers who are going to be sending many pieces of mail in a short period of time. Peel and seal envelopes use an adhesive strip with a peel-off cover, while flip and seal envelopes require a quick press to seal. Both of these are good options for larger mailings as a result.

How do you determine which envelopes are right for your customers? We’d love to see your recommendations in the comments below.

Filed Under: Design, Education, News, Print Products, Stationery

Three Simple Tips for Designing a Better Form

Posted on March 22, 2019 Written by

When your customer comes to you for a form, they have a lot of options to choose from. This is especially true if they are ordering a custom form where their form can truly be a canvas for anything they want to print. With so many options, you might be called on to help your customer create a custom form, and designing a form for them is a great opportunity for you to help them create an even more effective form. Here are our tips for designing a better form.

1. Make it Clear What Information Your Customer Needs
Your customer’s form is, first and foremost, a practical piece of print. It’s the essential information for a client’s order, the receipt for a catered event, a record of services provided, or some other important documentation. That’s why it’s important to make it very clear what information the reader needs to provide. Use simple words like “name” or “zip code” and use readable fonts.

And, when you’re creating a custom form, it’s also important that you don’t include information that doesn’t need to be there. After all, why make space for information that you don’t really need? Not only will unused information make the form look cluttered, it can make it more difficult for the person filling out the form to navigate. Streamlining the form can help make it even more clear how the form should be filled out.

2. Avoid All Caps
Including text in all caps creates a very uniform look, but it makes forms much harder to read! This means that the forms will be much harder to fill out, and that will make them take longer to fill out and to process.

3. Embrace Personalization
Your customer has worked hard on their brand, and if you’re creating a custom form for them you should highlight that brand! Not only does this give them a chance for better brand recognition among their clients, but it gives them a new promotional opportunity with every form. They can highlight their logo, include full color photographs of new products, and more.

Do you design custom forms for your customer? How do you ensure that they are effective? We’d love to see your suggestions in the comments below.

Filed Under: Design, News, Print Products, Stationery

3 Reasons to Check Out NSP’s Architectural Signage Catalog

Posted on March 21, 2019 Written by

What’s new from Navitor Specialty Products (NSP)? We just released our architectural signage catalog featuring a variety of different signage options including new sign audit and installation services to support specialty signage projects and help make growing your signage business a breeze. Here are just three reasons to check out this new catalog.

Get Inspired
The first section of the catalog is dedicated to inspiration, showing off what your customers can do with the signage included in the catalog. This is a great way to highlight the effect that different signage options can create in a finished space. We show a photograph to highlight the look of the space and then break down the different sign options used so that your customer can take that inspiration directly into the ordering process.

Make the Process Simple
We know that, for your customers, transforming the space can be intimidating even on a good day. For 2019, we have added options for new services including sign audits and sign installation. This takes the fear out of the process of signage ordering for those customers that need it.

We’ve also included information to help guide you and your customers through the process of ensuring that signage is ADA-compliant. Not only does this signage make their facilities more accessible for individuals with disabilities, but it can also reflect their brand as beautifully as other signage.

And speaking of their signage options…

Choose From a Wide Selection of Products
NSP offers a wide variety of different products in this catalog, allowing your customers to choose from indoor and outdoor signage as well as signage tailor-made for special events. With a wide variety of stocks to choose from and many stylish shapes available, your customer can create signage that brings their brand style to every part of their facilities.

Filed Under: Marketing, News, Print Products, Resources

Have a Laugh: How to Use Humor in Your Business

Posted on March 20, 2019 Written by

how to use humor and jokes to sell business cards, brochures, sales sheets, letterhead, envelopes, and promotional products in your personalized print businessWe all love to laugh, and laughter can be a great tool in your business if you’re looking to build rapport with your customers. Not only will it help your customers connect with you as a person, but it can also leave them feeling a little more positive about every interaction they have. However, using humor in your business can be tricky. Here are our tips for having a laugh and benefiting your business at the same time.

Use What You Know
Using what you know about your customers is a good way of creating a humorous message that will connect with them. This means pinpointing what is funny to them. Are your customers fond of the cat videos that circulate on the internet? You might be able to work one into a more casual presentation for a moment of levity. Do they enjoy a pun? You can probably

Focus on Timing
One of the golden rules in comedy is that timing is everything, and that goes double for using humor in your business. Are you working on a speech, for example? Having a joke in the introduction could be a great way to start the event on a lighter, friendlier foot and start building rapport with your audience. If your customer is stressed and hoping to resolve a challenge, on the other hand, they probably won’t appreciate your humor even if you’re attempting to relieve some of that stress.

If you’re wondering about the timing of the joke, consider whether you would find the joke helpful if you were in your customer’s shoes. If having a laugh would help diffuse the situation for you, it might be a good time to have a joke with your customers.

Keep it Light
Because you are in a business setting, it’s important to keep your humor light and stay away from controversial topics. You’re usually pretty safe with a pun, for example, but humor that touches on an edgier subject like politics could alienate your customer as easily as it could build a connection. This could even make your business as a whole look bad.

And, speaking of things it might be best not to joke about…

Don’t Make the Customer the Butt of the Joke
This may seem obvious, but it’s the sort of thing that can get lost when tension is running high: don’t make a joke at your customer’s expense. They probably won’t appreciate it, and it could end up causing more problems than it solves.

Good Humor is Natural Humor
The best humor comes naturally out of the moment. An over rehearsed line can feel dry, where a spontaneous turn of phrase feels fresh and will be much funnier and more memorable. If you’re in the moment and paying attention to your customer’s mood, you’re more likely to have a natural, humorous moment that speaks to your customer.

How do you use humor in your business? Do you have a favorite joke? We’d love to see your comments below.

Filed Under: News

5 Inspiring Spring Marketing Ideas

Posted on March 15, 2019 Written by

It’s been a snowy winter for most of the country, but spring is just around the corner and that can be a great start for your upcoming marketing messages! No matter where you market, adding a touch of spring can be a good way to spark your creativity or to catch the eye of your customers. Here are five of our ideas for creating a spring-themed marketing message for your business.

1. Embrace Color
If your winter was anything like ours, you probably saw a lot of snow, making spring a perfect time to embrace color in your promotions. Create a colorful display for your storefront, show off your colorful samples, or add a pop of color to the emails that you send your customers.

If you want a starting point for those colorful marketing messages, consider discussing the colorful print pieces you offer. Not only do colorful options like ASTROBRIGHTS® papers or full color print make your print offering vibrant, they give your customers a chance to bring color to their own promotions.

2. Make a Nod to Tax Season
Spring time is tax time, and that is an almost universal experience for your customers. That’s why working tax season into your marketing is one way to bring them through your door. This could be as simple as referencing tax season in your email newsletter or as complex as creating a tax-themed coupon or sale.

3. Celebrate Spring Cleaning
Another thing that might be top of mind for your customers is spring cleaning. Whether they want to polish up their business cards or get organized with new forms, folders and stamps, some products are a natural fit for your customer’s spring cleaning efforts. They might appreciate the reminder of the organizational options you offer or need to reorder now that spring is here.

4. Take Advantage of Good Weather
Once spring weather has warmed the weather, it’s a great time to expand your marketing efforts by bringing your focus outside. From participating in sidewalk sales to opening the doors of your storefront to let in the fresh air (and passers-by), with more people passing by in the warm weather you have more potential to make a sale. It might be a good time to invest in a nice window display, some freestanding signage for the sidewalk in front of your store, or

5. Thank People
A simple “thank you” can make a big impact, and spring is a great time to send them to your customers. Consider sending “thank you” notes to your top customers to thank them for braving the winter weather to do business with you.

Do you have any tips for promotions this spring? We’d love to see your suggestions in the comments below.

Filed Under: News

5 Ways to Use Social Media in Your Business

Posted on March 14, 2019 Written by

ways to use social media marketing to boost your personalized print businessIf you use social media in your personal life, you probably know many social media sites for the connections you make with friends and family. However, beyond those baby pictures and news articles you can also find a lot of potential to grow your business! Here are just a few ways that you can use social media to benefit your personalized print business.

1. Join In On A Weekly Hashtag To Emphasize Aspects of Your Business
One good way to keep yourself posting is to get involved in a weekly hashtag like #ThrowbackThursday. Just be sure to pick one that’s a good fit for your business. Does your print business have a long history? The aforementioned #ThrowbackThursday could be a great way to emphasize that history in a more casual way. #MotivationMonday, on the other hand, could be a great way to show off some inspiring print pieces that could motivate your customers to create something extraordinary for their business.

2. Keep Tabs on Your Competition
If your competitors are on social media, you have a unique opportunity ahead of you to keep an eye on what they’re doing. Are your competitors doing something particularly well, like handling customer service concerns in the semi-public setting of social media? Consider how you can improve your skills to better compete with them.

3. Show the More Human Side of Your Business
If you’re looking to create a more personal connection with your customers, social media can be a great way to show the human side of your business to your customers. It can help put a human face on your business whether you make posts to emphasize the employees your customers will meet at your business, use it as a chance to highlight the way your business helps out in the community, or simply interact with your customers in an informal way. This helps connect your customers emotionally with your business.

4. Create Better Customer Service
Many customer service interactions are going online, and having a social media presence allows you to create great customer service interactions in a space where those interactions could positively influence others. Just make sure you have well-prepared responses when you hit the “post” button, and if things start getting heated be ready to take things offline to talk to your customer.

5. Increase Brand Visibility
Brands large and small reach out to new customers on social media, and according to We Are Social the posts on a brand’s Facebook page reach an average of 10.7% more people than their current follower count. That’s a huge opportunity to make your business more visible!

What do you use social media for in your business? We’d love to see you join the conversation in the comments below.

Filed Under: Education, Marketing, News

Announcements vs. Postcards: Which Should Your Customer Use?

Posted on March 13, 2019 Written by

When your customer comes to you for help in creating a mailing for their business, they have a lot of print options to choose from. How can you help them narrow down their options to find the perfect print piece for their project? Here are a few questions to ask.

How Formal is Their Mailing?
This is probably the biggest deciding factor when your customer wants to create a piece to be mailed. Postcards are generally a more informal style of communication, which makes them a good fit for more informal events like real estate open houses or for in-store events like sales. The wide variety of stock options for your customer can create a look tailored to their mailing. ASTROBRIGHTS® papers, for example, are a great choice for energetic events or eyecatching sale promotions, while color core or extra thick stock are a good fit for adding a touch of professionalism.

Announcements, on the other hand, are a great fit for a wide variety of events—the real deciding factor is their design! They can create something colorful and casual for a fun event, or something a little more elegant for events that need additional polish. They can also use the elegant nature of an announcement to highlight the quality of new products or services that your customer is announcing.

Does Their Message Need to Make an Impact Quickly?
When your customer creates their mailing, it’s important to consider the person who will be reading that mailing. For some customers, a personalized envelope is a perfect touch of polish to a more formal communication, but it can also make that message easier to set aside and forget. This means that an announcement used for a mailing has to be chosen because it’s the right fit for your customer’s use.

Postcards, on the other hand, put nothing between the reader and the message your customer wants to get out. This makes them a good choice for communicating short and impactful messages like promotions for sales.

Are They Looking for Specialty Print?
Of course, your printed piece isn’t finished without print, and knowing your print options can also help your customer make decisions about which print product is right for them. Postcards allow your customers to get creative with their print using full color either in short or long run quantities. Full color print can be used to create simply colored minimalist images, or highlight photographs. They can also use spot color print on vibrant ASTROBRIGHTS® papers.

Announcements can be created using full color print for vibrant images, photographs, and more. They can also be printed  using spot color print for a stylish and simple announcement or a variety of specialty printing options like foil stamping or embossing that help add an elegant feel to invitations to banquets, galas, and other big events.

How do you help your customers know which print pieces are right for their next mailing? We’d love to see your tips and tricks in the comments below.

Filed Under: Marketing, News, Print Products, Stationery

How to Write the Perfect Follow-Up Email

Posted on March 8, 2019 Written by

write the perfect follow up sales email for your personalized custom print businessMany times when you meet a new business connection, whether that person is a fellow entrepreneur or a potential customer, it can be a challenge to fit what you need to into that first conversation. You are busy, and so are they.

Enter the follow-up email!

The follow-up email is probably something that you’re already familiar with, and it’s more than merely a formality. It’s a chance to strengthen the business connection you’ve made and to move that conversation forward, so writing the perfect follow-up email is a great way to do that. Here are our steps to writing the perfect follow-up email.

Step 1: Know What You Want to Achieve
A follow-up email can help support a wide variety of different objectives, and knowing what you want to achieve is an essential starting place. Maybe you want to get more information or the answer to a question you’ve had since you last spoke. Maybe you want to arrange a meeting. Maybe you’re working to finalize a sale after your customer mentioned a purchase they wanted to make. Keep that objective in mind as you write.

Step 2: Jog Their Memory
Making sure that you and the recipient of your email are on the same page is essential, so be sure to begin your email with some context. Remind them of who you are and when you last talked, then be sure to remind them which point you are following up on. For example, if you met a prospective customer at a networking event you could say “I just wanted to touch base with you after meeting you last week at the South Central networking event …”

Be ready for them to not remember talking to you, though—and it’s okay if they don’t! If they don’t remember you, using specific details will help ensure that your follow-up doesn’t come across as a cold email technique.

Step 3: Explain Why You’re Emailing
If you had a previous conversation about a specific product in the last step, you might have already done this. If not, be sure to explain why you’re emailing. Did you discuss a product that you’re hoping to sell them? Did you mention that you would be happy to send them a digital catalog? Did they mention an upcoming brand update for which you have products to recommend? Take a moment to mention it.

Step 4: Include a Call to Action
So what’s next? Let your customer know. Ask them if they are interested in more information or whether you can schedule another conversation in the next week.

Step 5: Wrap it Up and Send!
Now that you’ve got the email written, it’s time to sign it and send it. Before you hit that “send” button, though, take a moment to read it through. You want to be sure that the email is short and to the point, and you want to make sure that it comes across as friendly and professional. After you’ve reviewed, send it their way.

How do you ensure that your follow-up emails are perfect? We’d love to see your tips and tricks in the comments below.

Filed Under: Education, Marketing, News
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